2016 UK Championship semi-finals tips: Rampant Rocket can easily thwart Fu
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2016 UK Championship semi-finals tips
Just four potters remain in the 2016 UK Championship in snooker from York’s Barbican Centre and what a fantastic quartet they are!
An irrepressible Ronnie O’Sullivan could have the perfect early birthday present with a sixth success in the green baize sport’s second most prestigious ranking event.
The Rocket remains an odds-on favourite at 8/11 with Coral to rack up yet another UK success, though world number one Mark Selby (9/4) is his likely final opponent if the betting is any indicator.
Ronnie and the Jester from Leicester have penultimate hurdles to clear first, however, in respective opposition Marco Fu (14/1 tournament outsider) and Shaun Murphy (6/1).
Across these two tasty tussles, our experts have picked out the best value Murphy v Selby bets and O’Sullivan v odds, so we present 2016 UK Championship semi-final tips…
Murphy v Selby bets: More value in Magician than Jester
The career head-to-head record between these two Triple Crown winners in snooker is tight, with Selby just ahead 17-16, so given how the Jester was taken the distance by John Higgins in the quarters it may be wise to bet against him.
Murphy makes for an attractive 6/4 outsider here, because he battered Luca Brecel in the last eight. That was undoubtedly an easier assignment for the Magician, but Selby looks a little short at 8/15 for victory.
Both potters have come through final frame deciders at least once during their campaigns in York so far, leaving a 13/4 price on their encounter going all the way not without merit.
When Murphy and Selby last met in a best of 11 frames contest, the former edged it en route to taing the 2015 Masters title. A repeat 6-5 result in the Magician’s favour is thus an intriguing 8/1 chance.
O’Sullivan v Fu odds: Impossible to resist Rocket
No wonder Ronnie is an overwhelming 1/6 favourite to make the UK Championship final here, because he’s on a streak of eight wins of the spin against Hong Kong cueman Fu.
In their last encounters, the Rocket’s Far East opponent has barely got out of the blocks, going down 6-1 and 6-0. That makes O’Sullivan better value at 4/6 to cover the handicap of 2.5 frames, and is only rubber stamped by his sensational form in York so far.
Yet to drop more than a couple of frames in any match at the Barbican Centre this year, Ronnie’s fearsome form is problematic for Fu, who makes little to no case for an upset at 4/1.
With O’Sullivan odds-on in so many markets and deservedly so, punters must seek value snooker bets where they can. One that certainly stands out is 6/4 for the Rocket to lead 3-1 after four frames, as he’s managed this in two of his last three fixtures with Fu.
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